Part 1 of 2
Daily Office Readings for Sunday of the 3rd Week of Lent: Year 1
Morning Psalms 93 and 96; Evening Psalm 34;
Jeremiah 6:9 to 15; 1st Corinthians 6:12 to 20; Mark 5:1 to 20
“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own?” (1st Corinthians 6:19)
I have to be honest about picking these words. I picked this verse from our Morning Prayer reading because it shares the light of our Gospel reading from the Gospel according to John in our Eucharistic reading for today which follows in Part 2 of 2 below.
Leading to this insight about our bodies being temples of the Lord, Paul, is on a tirade about fornication, which is good advice. But he reminds us that deep within us is the soul, the temple resting place of God. It is a sacred place in us specifically set aside as the dwelling place of God. It should be taken care of and maintained with prayer and devotion to God.
Part 2 of 2
Eucharistic Readings for the 3rd Sunday of Lent: Year B
Exodus 20:1 to17; Psalm 19; 1st Corinthians 1:18 to 25; John 2:13 to 22;
“ He told those who were selling the doves, “Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace!”” (John 2:16)
This all started within reason. Worshipers could not afford to bring sacrificial animals to the temple trusting that the sacrifice animals would be okay on the journey. So, “businesses” were set up to satisfy the need to offer healthy animals for sacrifice according to the Law of Moses. But like many good ideas, things that start out with good intentions sometimes end up to be self-serving.
Jesus uses his own body as a metaphor for his own resurrection. As our Lord Jesus uses his body as an example, so too should we look at our own bodies as temples to the Lord. Within us is a space sacred to the Lord.
We have choices. If we do not reserve our inward temples for the Lord, something else will move in and occupy it. What moves in may not be pleasant or in our best interest. This morning’s Gospel reading was about Legion, the multiple demons that possessed a man. Let us choose Jesus because Jesus can, and will, save us and keep us in heaven for all eternity; so say the saints of God.
Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to, and through, the saints of God, and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John
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